Title:
The
Daring Young Man
Author:
Jane
George
Release
date: December 10, 2012
Genre:
Fantasy
Age
Group: Young Adult Fantasy – I usually recommend for 14+
Buy
Links:
Goodreads:
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16081720-the-daring-young-man
Book
Description:
Circus is one big family all over the world, and Dante hates everything to do with it. But to survive, he must choose between joining the ranks of the tiny, yet magical Mumbo Jumbo Circus or its nemesis, the Las Vegas spectacular, Cirque Patron. And it doesn't help that two very different girls are confusing the situation.
If he makes the wrong choice, he won't have a future to worry about.
Book #1 Description
THE MUMBO JUMBO CIRCUS
MAGIC. MYSTERY. MAYHEM. The MUMBO JUMBO
CIRCUS...
Step right up into the world of mystery and magic that is The Mumbo Jumbo Circus, a rag-tag traveling circus that is also home to a group of throwaway teens. When 15 year old Evan takes up with the circus, she has nowhere else to go. She soon discovers this circus is like no other. The Ringmaster was bequeathed a powerful ju-ju that brings forth a magical talent, or donvrai, in certain individuals. Evan's gift is the ability to read horses' minds. She's terrified of horses, with good reason. Worse, a traitor who wants the ju-ju is convinced Evan will make a success out of Mumbo Jumbo Circus and they will do anything to stop her. Does she have what it takes to be a star in the center ring and save her weird, new-found family?
Step right up into the world of mystery and magic that is The Mumbo Jumbo Circus, a rag-tag traveling circus that is also home to a group of throwaway teens. When 15 year old Evan takes up with the circus, she has nowhere else to go. She soon discovers this circus is like no other. The Ringmaster was bequeathed a powerful ju-ju that brings forth a magical talent, or donvrai, in certain individuals. Evan's gift is the ability to read horses' minds. She's terrified of horses, with good reason. Worse, a traitor who wants the ju-ju is convinced Evan will make a success out of Mumbo Jumbo Circus and they will do anything to stop her. Does she have what it takes to be a star in the center ring and save her weird, new-found family?
About
the author:
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Author
and illustrator Jane George lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. She holds a
BFA in illustration from the California College of the Arts and has won awards
for her art.
A
dedicated writer for over a decade, she produces and publishes her YA fantasy
and literary titles under her personal imprint, Paper Grove Publishing. Find
out more at: www.Jane-George.com
Author
social media links:
DARING YOUNG MAN Excerpt #2 from Chapter 13.
Dante and
Markie, a strange girl who has taken up with the circus teens, are busking
(performing for money) in Balboa Park, San Diego. The act ends with a kiss:
Markie crashed
into him. By all rights, he should have been flattened. The impression was more
like being absorbed into a marshmallow. Her arms wrapped around him, sending a
rush of feeling all down his back that continued into his hamstrings and
calves. He shuddered, and she responded by quivering with glee. Her eyes were
bulbous. Her teeth protruded. Dante should be repulsed.
But he wasn’t.
The crowd
started chanting, “Kiss him! Kiss him!”
Markie played
the moment to its fullest, glancing at the crowd, her expression bursting with
naiveté, as if to ask, “Should I, really?”
They hooted and
stomped.
She ripped the
fake lips from her face and placed her mouth upon Dante’s.
A collective,
“OOOOOOOOH,” rose from the audience.
Dante barely
heard it. What he did hear was the haunting lullaby from the night he almost
drowned and the seductive sound of ocean waves relaxing his defenses, drawing
him in. Her mouth slid over his with sublime tenderness. He couldn’t stop
himself from kissing her back. The kiss grew deeper.
His body buzzed,
and along with the sensation came an overwhelming sense of her love. For him. He felt himself melting into
her. He craved this unconditional comfort she offered. And her kiss was so
incredibly hot. So sinuous. He forgot
this was Markie. She hugged him tighter, and he floated on a soothing bed of
complete ease. His hurt, his worry, his anger,
vanished. He longed to keep kissing her, to disappear into her love.
The lullaby
pulled at his thoughts. A hiss-hiss sound tugged at his body. It was the sound
waves made as they kissed the sand. Over and over. He could no longer tell
where he ended and Markie began. They merged. For a split second, he connected
with her pure, inner joy, sparkling and fizzy, like he was her.
Dante wasn’t
swimming, but he felt like he was. Deep in his soul, something black rose up
like a shark, ascending toward the surface beneath his desperate, paddling
feet. He couldn’t allow this. She’d drown him. Kill who he was. He couldn’t breathe.
He pushed away
from Markie and stumbled backward.
They were alone.
The crowd had long dispersed.
“¿Qué diablos?” he demanded.
“We kissed.” She
stared at him with those ugly, gorgeous goggle-eyes. “It was part of the act.”
“I’m talking
about the rest of it.” He backed a step further from her. “What in hell
happened, man?”
She walked over
to the coffee can and lifted it. “We made a bunch of money is what happened. We
work well together.”
“Huh.”
“There’s a group
of people coming out of the conservatory.” Markie pointed. “Let’s start the act
over.”
“You mean do it
again?” Dante couldn’t quite keep the dismay out of his voice.
“Yeah, of
course. The Mumbo Jumbo Circus needs money. We can double what’s in this can
right now.”
He narrowed his
eyes at her, trying to see her secrets. “You’re some type of siren aren’t you?
You know, like the ones that drown sailors.”
She startled.
“What are you talking about? We don’t… Those aren’t real.”
“You tried to
drown me with that kiss,” he accused.
“You’re nuts. I
would never…” She set down the can and put her hands on her hips. “I saved your
life on that beach!”
Angry again,
Dante walked up close to her. “Saved my life? I woke up naked, covered in sand,
and couldn’t remember much. How about you tell me what went on, yeah?”
“I rescued you
so now I care about you, is that so awful?”
Dante froze.
That was exactly how he felt about Belinda. Well that, and a healthy dose of
lust.
He said, “I
don’t remember needing to be rescued.” Which wasn’t true.
“Trust me. You
were well on your way to being the cutest corpse I’ve ever seen.”
Dante hated to be called cute. And wait a
minute, she’d seen other corpses? He was far from reassured. He could recall
the gangbangers, their fists and their knives. He remembered backing into the
ocean to escape them. After that, his mind filled with that haunting lullaby
and a warm mushy feeling. Yuck. That feeling, combined with the frustration of
not being able to recount everything that happened that night, added to his
rage.
“You must be one
heck of a swimmer,” he spat out. “Olympic level even.”
“Oh, I’m better
than that. I’m a regular sea monster.”
Dante laughed and, oddly, his anger
dissipated. He couldn’t figure her out. What an absurd thing to say.
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